The application of biotechnology to nutrition: an overview

Crop biotechnology is being used in two major ways to enhance human nutrition: to improve global food security by making more food available, especially locally grown and familiar foods in the developing world, and by enhancing the nutritional composition of foods that would interest both the developed and developing worlds. Since the first commercialized products of biotechnology are major commodity crops grown primarily in the US, Canada and Argentina (soybeans, corn, canola and cotton), there is concern about whether and when crop biotechnology will help the developing world. There are, however, several on-going projects in Africa, SE Asia and Latin America where crop biotechnology is being used to enhance locally grown crops. The expectation is that genetically improved crops, e.g., those able to resist local pests, will allow even small-scale farmers to grow more crops using fewer inputs and in an environmentally sustainable manner. Furthermore, there are numerous on-going projects to enhance the nutritional or health value of foods via transgene technology. A few of these projects are described in this article.